William Drummond Stewart

December 26, 1795 - April 28, 1871

Stewart, William Drummond, Scottish adventurer (Dec. 26, 1795-Apr.
28, 1871). Born at Murthly Castle, Perthshire, Scotland, he was the second son
and one of seven children of Sir George Steward, 17th. lord of Grandtully, fifth
baronet of Murthly. William joined the 6th. Dragoon Guards, was three months in
Spain and Portugal and as a lieutenant served under Wellington at Waterloo, five
years later becoming a captain in the 15th. King's Hussars and soon retiring on
half pay. Seeking adventure he visited St. Louis in 1832, contacted William
Clark, Pierre Chouteau Jr., William Ashley and other luminaries and arranged to
accompany Robert Campbell who was taking a Sublette pack train to the 1833
rendezvous of mountain men. The party left St. Louis April 13 and attended the
Horse Creek Rendezvous in the Green River Valley of Wyoming. Here Steward met
Jim Bridger, Antoine Clement, Bonneville, Tom Fitzpatrick and others. With some
of these people Stewart visited the Big Horn Mountains, wintered at Taos, and
attended the next rendezvous at Ham's Fork of the Green, later that year
journeying on to Fort Vancouver, Washington. He attended the 1835 rendezvous at
the mouth of New Fork River on the Green and reached St. Louis in November.
Stewart's income from Murthly had sadly declined so he went to New Orleans,
speculated in cotton to recoup, wintered in Cuba and in May joined Fitzpatrick's
train to the Rockies once more for another rendezvous on Horse Creek. He
wintered in 1836-1837 at New Orleans, speculating in cotton again; he learned
that his son-less older brother was dying of cancer, which would make William
the seventh baronet of Murthly with plenty of money. For the rendezvous of 1837
he took along an artist, Alfred Jacob Miller, who painted a notable series of
works on Mountain Man life, the rendezvous, Indians and Rocky Mountain scenes,
some of which done as oils would later grace Murthly Castle. Again Stewart
accompanied Fitzpatrick's train to the rendezvous on the Green and later visited
the Wind River Mountains. Stewart attended the following rendezvous on the Popo
Agie River and enroute back to St. Louis learned that his brother John had died.
Stewart leisurely returned to Scotland and Murthly Castle in July 1838 with
Clement and some Indians and his many trophies, Miller arriving later with his
sketches. Homesick for the American West Stewart returned to this continent in
late 1842. Stewart and his entourage joined the Sublette train to the 1843
rendezvous--the last the Rockies would see--and after word visited the area that
would become Yellowstone Park, returning to St. Louis in October and going back
to Scotland for good. His later life was generally tranquil; his sone George
survived the Charge of the Light Brigade in the Crimea, but died before his
father. William Stewart's parenthood, if it was that, of the mysterious Francis
Nichols was never proven, although Nichols migrated to Texas and called himself
Lord Stewart until the English House of Lords insisted he stop it, whereafter he
was known merely as Mr. Stewart. He married but was soon divorced and died at
San Antonio November 23, 1913, aged 67.